Wednesday, December 9, 2009

It's official: Charlie Strong hired at Louisville

Fifteen minutes into the press conference on Wednesday to introduce him as the new head coach at the University of Louisville, Charlie Strong was asked about the phone call.

"When we were offered this job me and my wife (Victoria) looked at each other and it was very emotional,'' said Strong, who coached the Florida defense since 2003 and helped the Gators to the 2006 and 2008 national titles.

And then he paused and put his head down for several seconds to fight back the tears. Finally the crowd applauded and he recovered.

"Because you just never knew it was going to happen,'' he finished.

Strong, an African-American coach with a white wife, had fought through fears of being stereotyped to finally become a head coach after being bypassed several times. He is the third African-American to currently hold a head coaching position at a BCS conference and one of 11 minority head coaches among the 120 Bowl Subdivision programs.

He got a five-year deal worth about $1.6 million per season.

Strong, 49, was a finalist for the Broyles Award, which goes to the nation's top assistant coach. He will immediately start recruiting and mentioned Georgia, Ohio and Florida among the areas he will seek talent. Strong does not plan to hire an assistants off the Florida staff but promised to bring in an offensive coordinator that will create excitement.

"What's amazing is the number of phone calls you get and the number of friends you never knew you had,'' he joked of coaches looking for jobs.

The Arkanasas native was inducted into Central Arkansas State's hall of fame earlier this fall, where he was a standout before getting into coaching. He has coaching stops, in addition to Florida, at Notre Dame, Texas A&M, South Carolina and Ole Miss.

He replaces Steve Kragthorpe, who was fired Nov. 28 after a 4-8 season in which the Cardinals tied for last in the Big East with a 1-6 league mark. He was 15-21 overall in three seasons.

As a head coach, Strong said he wanted to "see if I can win a national championship also.'' On the way to be introduced, he got a text message from Lisa Webster _ the mother of Gator offensive linemen Maurkice and Mike Pouncey: "I'm sorry you are leaving.''

Strong got the OK to coach the Gator defense in the Jan. 1 Sugar Bowl against Cincinnati. He said earlier Wednesday that he felt he owed it to the Florida players to finish his stay in Gainesville on a better note than the 32-13 loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship Game.

I am happy for Coach Strong, but sad for me! What a great guy and so good with the kids during the Gator Football Summer Camps! I look forward to seeing him be successful in Louisville, but will definitely miss having him at the Swamp.

Charlie got away with a lot thanks to the talent Urban got for him.Bama exposed his weakness in making adjustments and the rest was history. Cincinnati is going to score a bunch of points in the Sugar Bowl.I wish him well but he'll need good assistants to make it happen at Louisville.Now if only Urban can find a new job for Addazio (like at another college), the Gators will be on top again.

Coach Strong is not a rat. He is an excellent coach and an excellent leader of young men. I would send my sons to play for him. And by the way, I'm a Univ. of Georgia graduate, not a UF fan in any way. I am definitely and always have been a fan of Coach Strong and I will root for his success at Louisville now. Good luck Coach!

As a Louisville grad and lifelong fan, I'm really stoked about seeing Strong prowling the sidelines. The Big East needs a dominant defensive team, and I think he'll bring in a good flow of solid prep talent from the Southeast. When Louisville won the Orange Bowl a few years ago, we all thought it was a sign of things to come. Now we feel like that again, even knowing it'll be at least a couple of years before Strong's recruiting and influence can really take hold. We're excited in The Ville!

GREG MATTISON I HOPE TO REPLACE STRONG AS D-CORDINATOR O-CORDINATOR WILL HAVE TO RUN OFFENSE WITH BRANTLEY LIKE WHEN LEAKE WAS THERE THEY'LL BE BACK 22 IN A ROW AND ATTEMPTING TO WIN BACK TO BACK CHAMPIONSHIPS IS HARD

"The rats leave the house.."- Any successful program, including Florida State and Miami, have lost top assistants as head coaches. It happened to Florida last uear with Coach Mullen even when a National Championship Game was on the horizon. And by the way, any coach needs good assistants to make it happen!

"I wonder how much consideration was given him based on the color of his skin?"- Goal-oriented, Integrity, Qualications, and Accomplishments got Coach Strong the job. A glowing resume' and references has no color.

It's a shame someone works diligently all of their life to accomplish something and naysayers feel like they have the power to validate someone. Well, the administration at Louisville makes that decision. Godspeed Coach Strong!

"...Thanks to the talent Urban got for him- An abundance of the defensive players that we have were signed by Coach Strong. Wherever he has been he has produced, that includes before he worked with Coach Meyer.

From a GATOR fan in Louisville. thwe Cards excitment is through the roof. We all knew Charlies was good enough to be a head coach. I wish him the best! I will be going to more games at Cardinal Stadium to cheer him and the Cards on, however, If the Gators and Cards ever meet. Its all GATORS!

It IS hysterical what happens to fans when their teams plunge to mediocre. The jealousy is blatantly obvious and the fans are are not hard to identify. So you frustrated has-beens keep whining and we'll keep winning. Enjoy your bowl games girls.

there is no sure fire formula for who will make it and who will not as a coach or player. I wish Coach Strong the best and hope he does well enough to spur more BCS schools to consider the best candate with no regurad to skin color. I think Strong was the best avalible...period.

I'm glad Charlie finally gets to be a Head Coach, he's been passed over several times. But he screwed the Gators D against Alabama. It was evident that he didn't prepare them at all, while he had his foot out the door to Louisville.

The guy above me says they were not ready for Alabama...did you see Urban's offense light it up? That game was a clinic on how a coach can make a difference....I would argue talent was equal on that field...the coaches made the difference. Saban AND his staffed schooled Urban AND his staff!and before you call me a gator I'm not, I'm just a football fan.

"Strong, an African-American coach with a white wife, had fought through fears of being stereotyped to finally become a head coach after being bypassed several times. He is the third African-American to currently hold a head coaching position at a BCS conference and one of 11 minority head coaches among the 120 Bowl Subdivision programs."

Shouldn't they have written that his wife is a European-American; instead of a white woman? Bunch of racists at FT.

I will be watching Mr. Strong and hope he does well through the years. Bob Stoops has done well at Oklahoma, and his leaving Fl. made room for Charlie. We all knew soon after we saw how good he was that Strong was destined to be a head coach, and have been on pins and needles wondering when it would happen. Thanks for the memories Charlie, and good luck, you are a talented and classy guy and we will miss you.bill raines

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Meet David Jones

David Jones covers college sports for Florida Today, including the University of Florida since 1994, and is a current Heisman Trophy voter. He has served on various panels for college awards' selections, including the Associated Press top 25 poll. Get the latest on the Gators and other issues in college football from this award-winning beat writer.